Cheery Rafael Benitez happy with life at Napoli

For a man who spent most of his six months at Chelsea last season wearing a permanent scowl, Rafael Benitez now seems remarkably at ease with the world.

As he returns to English soil with his new club Napoli to play in this weekend’s Emirates Cup against Arsenal, Porto and Galatasaray, those long dark winter nights and ‘Rafa Out’ banners seem far in the past.

His successor, Jose Mourinho, may have styled himself the ‘Happy One’, but Benitez appears every bit as cheery. “The weather is really good today,” he said. “It was too hot in Naples. And the stadium is amazing. We were sitting on the grass, everything was nice.”

Suffice to say he rarely discussed the weather when he was Chelsea manager, and not just because it was awful. A summer on the Campanian coast has brought out his softer side.

There was a grim forbearance to his spell as interim manager of Chelsea — a job title he disliked. Though he mostly said all the right things and brought home the Europa League trophy, rarely did he appear to be enjoying himself.

Now, the smile is back. With a two-year contract under his belt, a clutch of impressive new signings and the warm glow of being at a club where he is wanted, we are now glimpsing the Benitez that charmed the Kop and brought an unprecedented era of success to Valencia.

“Yesterday,” he said, “I was talking to a person who was explaining to me why Naples is so special. We have the sea, the views, the weather, mountains, history. A lot of things. Hopefully we will have a very good team this year, so we will be happy. It’s a special city, the fans are always behind the team and that is really important.”

The subtext here was clear enough. Chelsea fans never warmed to Benitez and here was proof that he had never really warmed to them either. He had always been puzzled by their hostility to him and the undying fervour of Napoli’s tifosi appears to align with Benitez’s vision of the ideal football club — proud, passionate, united.

The irony, of course, is that however awkward his temporary arrangement with Chelsea, all parties ultimately got what they wanted out of it. Chelsea fans got Mourinho, who would not have been available mid-season. The club got another European trophy and Champions League qualification for the 11th successive season. And Benitez emerged with his reputation restored after an unhappy six-month car crash at Inter Milan in 2010.

Now, he is ready for another crack at Serie A, and the club’s eccentric chairman, Aurelio de Laurentiis, has thrown his considerable financial weight behind him. Napoli’s only Serie A titles, in 1987 and 1990, were inspired by Diego Maradona, and this season they will rely on the galvanising qualities of another Argentinian forward in £35 million (Dh197 million) signing Gonzalo Higuain.

There is a certain neatness to the idea of Higuain stepping on to the Emirates turf on Saturday. Arsenal wanted him this summer and were prepared to smash their transfer record in order to do so. Though Napoli had been monitoring him for some time, Benitez was convinced he was an Arsenal player in waiting before Real Madrid raised their asking price above £30 million.

“We had an idea he was one of our targets, but we thought it was difficult because of all the comments about Arsenal,” Benitez said. “In terms of the decision to do the deal, it was quite quick. It was an easy decision for me.”

More surprising still to Benitez was the capture of Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina on loan. “We were trying to sign Julio Cesar, and it was a surprise for us when Pepe Reina was available,” he said. “That was perfect. He has a lot of respect for the club [Liverpool] and he was surprised by the decision because nobody had told him.”

But then, De Laurentiis is the sort of chairman who makes things happen. Napoli are that sort of club too. And in the proud, headstrong Benitez they may have found their perfect match.